David Bruce, Jr.

“Since the starting of Mr. White in Hartford, Conn. 1805 but five letter cutters had been produced down to the year 1839 in the United States. They range in Seniority as follows, Richard Starr, William F. Hill, George B. Lothian, George Bruce and David Bruce, Jr. The scarcity of workmen in this department of typefounding is easily explained. It has always been the policy of the leading founders to purchase the punches of the cutters and by this prudent course hold the keys to the business and thereby control competition.” — David Bruce, Jr.

In 1845 he patented his invention of 1838, the Pivotal Typecaster, an automatic casting machine containing a spring-powered piston which pumped molten lead into the mould. It was licensed around the world, notably as the Brandt Typecasting Machine in Germany, and in 1853 to Miller & Richard in Edinburgh.